09/10 Schedules - Pacific Division

This division has everything! The defending champs, a rebuilding team headed for the lottery, a team with a coach who could play anyone and everyone and still finish 11th, and a couple of veteran-laden teams that will make a good push but will most likely be making hotel reservations before a game on in mid-April (as a best case scenario). Let's see how their schedules look for the upcoming fantasy season.

Golden State

4-game weeks: 10
Minimum game weeks: 1
Playoff schedule: 4-3-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 1 - teams also at minimum this week: IND, MIL, UTA

Week one is rough, but after that, you can get a lot of mileage out of Golden State. They never play more than two 4-game weeks in a row, and they have a span of four weeks from mid-Dec. to mid-Jan. where they play 3-games. Their style of play, though, can often make a Golden State 3-game week as valuable, if not more so, as a 4-game week for a team like Detroit. The key here is figuring out who is getting the minutes (and where, if extra position eligibility helps you (for Yahoo leagues whose position eligibilities are quite fluid to your benefit, not ESPN whose leagues lock in eligibility at the start of the season (let me know if they changed this from last year))). Captain Jack led the league in minutes played last year; he'd be the first one you could count on playing a lot, but him playing a lot equals him missing shots a lot and him turning it over a lot. #2 is Monta Ellis. If you were going to target a Warrior, he's the one you want. The last 2 months of the year, he was a top 25 player. He's not going to give you three's, but rebounds and steals the ball quite well for a PG. If someone in your league drafts Derrick Rose ahead of him, say thank you very much and take all moped jokes in stride. Right now on Yahoo! drafts, Ellis is being taken 9 spots behind Rose (40.3 vs. 49.3). Ray Zalinski's American Public is putting too much stock into round 1 of last year's playoffs against the Celtics, I think.

Andris Biedrins is the Warriors other top 50ish player. I think you know what you are getting with him by now. And if someone asks you for your sleeper, don't say Anthony Randolph. Not that he's not a fine player, but maybe you'll be in a league where everyone kinda forgets about him. Stephen Curry is another player on my rookie hold list. Feel free to draft him in the "bench" level of your draft; I don't think he'll have any real value until playing rotations shake out (good luck in that on the Nelson bench) or until the inevitable Corey Maggette injury.

The Warriors schedule is such that it precludes picking someone up for a 3 or 4 week run of 4-gamers. But picking up a hot Warrior is now de rigeur for fantasy players this half of the decade, so you have to keep an eye out for Azubuike, Morrow, Watson, Turiaf, and Wright. What, I didn't mention Acie Law or Speedy Claxton or Devean George? Yeah, how 'bout them Clippers!

Los Angeles Clippers

4-game weeks: 12
Minimum game weeks: 3
Playoff schedule: 3-4-3-2

Week 6 - teams also at minimum this week: NOH, OKC, ORL, POR, SAS
Week 7 - teams also at minimum this week: MIA, NYK, WAS
Week 10 - teams also at minimum this week: DET

Gasp! I almost sorta like this team. Not in a let's-talk-about-their-playoff-chances like, I mean still-crappy-but-is-on-the-rise-and-has-decent-fantasy-players like. I'll take Eric Gordon on my team for the right price. Camby is still a viable fantasy big man. As far as I know, Kaman can still play. Hey, Baron Davis ain't so bad. I'm less of an Al Thornton fan after last year, but on the right squad he could be okay. Go ahead and throw Rasual Butler in the late bench rounds of your draft, he won't be half bad. Blake Griffin will be another overdrafted rookie, which is just fine by this guy. Maybe even the guys they got from Minnesota, Smith and Telfair, can produce.

So there are things to work with. The Clips have a lot of 4 game weeks, so when the injuries happen - and oh yes, they will happen - you could score with a few Clipperinos. They have two spans of three 4-game weeks in a row, once in Jan. and once in late Feb./early March. The Clippers are well under the luxury tax line, have expirings, and if they were a much more savvy organization, they could produce a lot of fantasy opportunity in that late Feb./early March time. I'm not counting on it, but it's there.

Los Angeles Lakers

4-game weeks: 11
Minimum game weeks: 2
Playoff schedule: 3-4-3-2

Week 17 - teams also at minimum this week: none
Week 20 - teams also at minimum this week: ATL, HOU, PHX

NBA Champeens! I hear they got some guy Bryant and a Spaniard - Maximus I think. I was dead wrong last year, thinking that Gasol would shrink next to Bynum. I'd like to think that both would do well, but that shouldn't be the case. Could this be the year that their lack of point guardiness comes up to bite them? Maybe not, but the PG spot on the Lake Show is nigh worthless for fantasy. Man, I would have loved Ariza on this team. Artest? Good luck with that. He'll score and all, but I won't be surprised to see a few 4-11's from the field with 4 TO's, and that's really not going to help you too much.

Anyway, the two minimum game weeks for the Lakers come right after the All-Star break. Right before the break, they have 4-game weeks in weeks 10, 11, 13, 14, and 15. They should be rolling through their schedule then, so if you have one of their big fellas on your roster, ride them out until they play a game in Jerrah Jones's cavern. I'd keep an eye out for Farmar, Walton, and maybe even the Machine, just in case someone gets hurt (cough, Bynum) or something.

Phoenix

4-game weeks: 11
Minimum game weeks: 2
Playoff schedule: 3-4-3-2

Week 16 (All-Star week) - teams also at minimum this week: BOS, HOU, IND, MEM, NYK, OKC, TOR
Week 20 - teams also at minimum this week: ATL, HOU, LAL


Now here's a team you can wrap yourself up in fantasy-wise. A few guys in the top half of the draft (Amar'e, Nash, Richardson), guys who can fill out needs in your roster (Hill, Barbosa), and guys to watch out for in case something crazy happens (Frye, Dudley, Lopez). This team's a shell of its 2005 self, but still not one you'd want to play on the second game of back to back roadies.

Phoenix has a pretty nice schedule for H2H this year (after last year's 1 game week during Christmas - who let that happen?). Their minimum game weeks shouldn't do much damage, as one occurs during All-Star week. They have two runs on either side of the break of 4-gamers three weeks in a row, weeks 12-14 and weeks 17-19. And while their playoff schedule doesn't jump out at you, keep in mind that the first week of the playoffs (week 22), they have 3 games, but those three games are @Golden State, New York, and @ Minnesota. At the Suns pace, that can be better than a lot of 4-game weeks.

(Here's a good a time as any to say it. I have been basing playoff schedule according to how Yahoo! has always done it - 1st round week 22, semis week 23, finals combination of weeks 24 and 25. Well, now Yahoo! has gotten a little wise and you can have a li'l more flexibility in that playoff schedule. I know a lot of leagues won't change, but make sure you know when your playoffs are. Because I believe know is two-fifths or up to half of the battle.)

Sacramento

4-game weeks: 10
Minimum game weeks: 1
Playoff schedule: 4-3-3-2

Week 3 - teams also at minimum this week: IND, MIL, WAS

Screw it, I've almost had enough of these. The Kings roster is quite pre-AI Memphisian in that you've got a lot of guys who can do things for your fantasy squad, but in real life they suck. Kevin Martin screwed over a lot of people last year by getting hurt - don't do it again or someone will go out there and .. hurt you. Spencer Hawes will be taken in your draft, but no one will say, "Whoa, a little early for that!" nor "He was still on the board?" because he will be taken exactly where he should and may even win a week or two for you. Tyreke Evans is going to do some things on the court this year (who else will they play, Beno Udrih?) and I like him more than a lot of rookies that people will reach on. And if you don't do it on draft day, sometime soon keep an eye on Jason Thompson and Francisco Garcia. Garcia is the type of guy who can win you your league with all the stuff he can do if minutes are available, which they should be in Sac-town. And is there a food that Sacramento is famous for? Because if there is, Sean May will probably eat it. A lot of it.

The Kings have one minimum game week early, and other than that, 4 game weeks are spread out like New Jersey's so you never get a good run of those weeks. Like New Jersey, they will be gunning to get 250 out of 1,001 combinations of 14 ping pong balls. It's a shame that right now, the #1 pick is projected to be a point guard. Maybe that would work with Evans. The key to this season will be injuries. We know they will be teh suck, but if a couple of guys go down, someone could get a boatload of minutes and put up really good numbers, maybe Garcia, Thompson, or who knows.


Anyway, the point of this exercise was to look at the schedules of teams at some point in the draft season to look at what you are getting into, so you don't have crappy schedules jump up at you. I don't know about you, but Imma itchin' to draft!

09/10 Schedules - Northwest Division

Hey, Boozer can read! He can really read the fine print of his contracts, too. For now, Carlos is in the Northwest Division, with such classics as Denver, Portland, and team that used to play in Seattle and won a title in the 70's. Everyone's clearly chasing the Lakers and Spurs, but each one has their own pieces for fantasy purposes.


Denver

4-game weeks: 9
Minimum game weeks: 0
Playoff schedule: 4-3-3-2

Minimum game weeks:
None

Well looky here! Denver has this year's flat as a board schedule. What does that mean? Well, it means you should never have to take out someone because they play a 2 game week. With guys like Carmelo and Chauncey, you can set them in you lineup then not need to move them all year, like a rotisserie chicken. (RIP, Ron Popeil. What, he's alive? Why yes, with all of those products and infomercials, his legacy will live on for years. Oh, he's not actually dead yet? Carry on then.) You want guys on this squad who can churn out points, rebounds, assists, whatever they do well. As long as he keeps being healthy, Nene could thrive in a schedule like this. Of course, streaky guys (JR Smith) and one-cat wonders (Birdman) only get a few chances to really go over the top for you in 4-game weeks. The playoff schedule won't set off any fireworks, but there should be another fight for seeding like last season, so don't expect any of the Nuggets' top players to sit on the shelf come fantasy playoff time.

Minnesota

4-game weeks: 12
Minimum game weeks: 3
Playoff schedule: 4-3-3-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 4 - teams also at minimum this week: none
Week 15 - teams also at minimum this week: none
Week 19 - teams also at minimum this week: none

I can't really kill new GM David Kahn's work so far because even though Ricky Rubio no esta en la casa del Target, they just have to stay under the luxury tax line (and the salary cap line if necessary), collect pieces with moderate expiring contracts so they can be moved at some point, hope to hit on one or two 1st round draft picks by collecting multiple ones, and get a good coach to play at a good enough pace to keep fans excited. Heck, the Hawks did only one of those things 4+ years ago and they're in decent shape now. The Wolves can be bad to not-great the next couple of years; they owe the Clippers a #1 pick from the Jaric trade and it's protected top 10 the next 2 years, unprotected afterward - they might as well pounce for the 2011-2012 season to make that pick nigh worthless. Doesn't matter to me, I'm a 2 hr. plus Northwestern/Delta flight away from being effected. But at least I can see some sort of long range plan, and if I ever decide to don the blue n' green, I won't feel so bad.

Anyway, regarding the Wolves for fantasy - Al Jefferson, top 15 player, 20/10, yada yada yada. Kevin Love rebounds the ball, but only after drinking a special serum to control his fatness. New pickup Ramon Sessions should have plenty of people to dish it too, but of course he could use a team with a strong shot blocking presence behind him to take care of his lack of D (because then he would be Damon Sessions, and where's the flair in that?). I like Ryan Gomes and he would not be a bad late round/free agent pickup for the right week - they do have 12 4-gamers. I rate Johnny Flynn as a hold right now, well aware that someone in my league will like rookies more than I, scoop him up, and might get lucky with a decent PG. I'll take my chances. Enjoy the deep league you are in if you are grabbing Darius Songaila, and if something were to happen to Jefferson, he's not a bad pickup (see his percentages). And either my year is shot or I'm in a deep 20 team Yahoo league (where my year is still likely shot) if I'm picking up Brian Cardinal.

Now actually, the thing I just realized while typing this up 20 minutes ago: Minnesota has 3 2-game weeks (not counting AS and final season weeks), and in all 3 cases, they are the only team playing 2 games that week. Week 19 is a serious shot because 19 teams play 4 games that week. This is a major bummer if you picked Jefferson high as the anchor for your big-ball team. (No one else on Minny is worth the hassle of debating on sitting them in a 2 game week.) You need to have a reasonably high level big to back Jefferson up in those weeks, especially in week 19.
Here are the teams playing 4 games in week 19:

ATL, BOS, CHA, CLE, DAL, DEN, DET, GSW, HOU, IND, LAC, LAL, MEM, NYK, OKC, ORL, PHI, PHX, SAC.

Here are the teams playing 4 games in week 4 (13 teams total) and 19:

ATL, CHA, CLE, DET, HOU, IND, OKC, ORL

Here are the teams playing 4 games in week 15 (13 teams total) and 19:

ATL, BOS, DEN, LAL, MEM, SAC

The one team to play 4 game weeks while Minnesota plays 2's is Atlanta. For this reason, Al Horford needs to be on your radar if you take Al Jefferson in round 1. Let's say you take Al with the 10th pick, a perfectly fine spot. Your next pick is 15th; future picks are 34th, 39th, 58th, 63rd, and 82nd. 15, 34, and 39 are too high. You can maybe go 58th, but 63rd might be okay. Right now, on ESPN.com, he's ranked at an average of 77 from the rankings of Brian McKitish, Erik Karabell, and Keith Lipscomb (McKitish has him 64th, not in top 85 of Karabell and Lipscomb - sorry he doesn't shoot enough 3's for you guys). GMTR has him ranked 51st in a 9 cat league, so some out there see a good year for him (while healthy).

I'd say the chances of Horford being available for you at 58 are about 40-60%; the number of centers you have to play will certainly be a factor. Also, where you take Al Jefferson in round 1/2 is a factor as well. You'll have a better opportunity at Horford if you pick Al 8th instead of in the 12/13 snake spot. Horford and Jefferson should both be PF/C's. If you take another center (and a scorer at that) between rounds 1 and 5, you can seriously lock in a big ball strategy. If you want to go in another non-big-ball direction with Jefferson, you'll need to take a hard look at Josh Smith and Joe Johnson, too. There, fantasy tips regarding Minnesota/Al Jefferson you can use in your H2H league. You're welcome.

Oklahoma City

4-game weeks: 11
Minimum game weeks: 2
Playoff schedule: 4-4-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 6 - teams also at minimum this week: LAC, NOH, ORL, POR, SAS
Week 16 (All-Star week) - teams also at minimum this week: BOS, HOU, IND, MEM, NYK, PHX, TOR

The Thunder have a player named Kevin Durant. He is a good player. You should draft him if you get the chance. Don't just listen to me, here are his stats, see for yourself.

Oklahoma City has a good little schedule - 4 game weeks are spread out throughout the year, their minimum game weeks won't kill you, and they shouldn't have to worry about resting players for the playoffs just yet. They are young enough that the players you want to see get some exposure are already playing. The Thunder were a average-to-deep league goldmine last year, as they had a lot of players who were worth drafting or picking up at some point last year: Durant, Westbrook, Green, Sefolosha, Weaver, Collison, Krstic, Wilcox. Add in James Harden (and possibly Etan Thomas) to the mix this year, and you could have plenty of guys on the squad who have the opportunity to get 25+ mpg and fantasy relevance. Shaun Livingston isn't on that list yet, but you never know.

Right now, OKC is the only team under the salary cap, which could be important come February as teams scramble to get under the luxury tax number. Their roster may be slightly different after the All Star break, and more likely someone else's roster will be altered by having traded with Oklahoma City. The Thunder won't take on any bad contracts, but they could get a free player or two this spring. Again, just something to watch out for with the Thunder later in the year, but Thunder blue should already be on the brain with their 4-4-4-2 playoff schedule.

Portland

4-game weeks: 12
Minimum game weeks: 3
Playoff schedule: 3-3-3-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 6 - teams also at minimum this week: LAC, NOH, OKC, ORL, SAS
Week 12 - teams also at minimum this week: NJN
Week 21 - teams also at minimum this week: DAL, ORL

Portland has 12 4-game weeks, four of them in the first five weeks of the season. They also have another stretch right before the All-Star break of four 4-gamers in five weeks. You'll get your money's worth Portland players this year. But if your trade deadline is in late Feb., that's when you may want to deal a little. They have a 2-gamer the week before the playoffs start, and it's a weak 3-3-3-2 after that.

As I mentioned with Orlando, Orlando's and Portland's schedules do not match up well at all. So if you get all down with B-Roy, Rashard Lewis ain't gonna work so well, especially with him playing just 72 games max.

Portland's schedule is frontloaded, so you're going to have to gamble that their playing rotation is settled some come draft time. Steve Blake isn't worth drafting in regular leagues, but Andre Miller is; Miller's value is likely going to be higher later in the year though, as a) Blake may not be there, and b) he will have wrested away a majority of the minutes. Oden may be worth something this year, as he'll have a year's amount of league play under his belt, and I assume that from May until now he hasn't fouled anyone. I wouldn't be afraid of drafting any Blazer or scooping one up early. Just don't look for Travis Outlaw on my playoff roster.

Utah

4-game weeks: 12
Minimum game weeks: 3
Playoff schedule: 4-3-3-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 1 - teams also at minimum this week: GSW, MIL
Week 13 - teams also at minimum this week: None

You draft Deron Williams real high, looking for assists right off the bat, and oof, you're stuck with a 2-game week 1. Suck it up, bee-yotch, you can have more than one point guard on your roster. Alright, if you're worried, you should be worried about week 13. Utah is the only team playing 2 games that week and 21 teams are playing 4 games. For safety sake, here are the teams that play 4 games in both week 1 and week 13:

LA Clippers, Portland Trail Blazers. That's it.

So if you have Deron Williams, I guess you could go for Andre Miller or Eric Gordon or Baron Davis. If you have Memo Okur, as your center, well, you won't get another one who shoots threes - maybe you could borrow Spencer Hawes for week 13. If you have Millsap or Boozer, they can sit on your bench for a week or two. If you have Ronnie Brewer, well then, your plan to grab steals every week may have taken a hit.

The Jazz have 6 guys on their squad who are useful on standard fantasy squads. Their schedule really shouldn't dictate too much on that, but the big part of their schedule is right after the All Star break, where 5 of the next 6 weeks are 4-gamers. Who knows, the Millsap/Boozer conundrum may have been solved by then due to trade or injury or swine flu.


Thus endeth the Northwest Division. Stay tuned for the last division, the Pacific. Some of those teams are pretty good, like the Lakers. They wear purple and gold.

09/10 Schedules - Southwest Division

Timmy, why do I feel that come late in the season, you'll be reading a newspaper on the sidelines, a la Willie Beamen in "Any Given Sunday"? (Go Albuquerque!) In the off-season, though, the Spurs and other divisions made moves to make themselves better; they added Richard Jefferson and Antonio McDyess. Dallas got the Matrix and locked down Kidd for three whole years - and got Drew Gooden! Houston swapped Artest for Ariza and decided to do away with the feeling they would get in February of "Man, we're going good, hope Yao doesn't get hurt." New Orleans got Okafor for Chandler which is OK I guess, but (channeling sportsguy33) anytime you get a chance to trade one of your starters for a 2nd round pick seven years from now, you do it. (But let's not congratulate ourselves too much, that pick is conditional.) And Memphis made deals to get other teams under the luxury tax - aren't they team players!

On to the schedules!

Dallas

4-game weeks: 10
Minimum game weeks: 1
Playoff schedule: 4-4-3-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 21 - teams also at minimum this week: ORL, POR

Dallas's schedule has a few good stretches - weeks 3-6 where they play 15 games, and weeks 17, 18, and 19 where they have 4 games each. You can't complain about their fantasy playoff setup either. It lays out pretty nicely if you take Dirk in round 1, and Jason Kidd with his triple-double potential can be pretty solid since they aren't stuck with a lot of 2 game weeks. It's a veteran team, so don't expect any sleepers to jump out and show themselves from the free agent pool. Marion had a better season in retrospect last year, and likely will be drafted in a better spot than round 1. Erick Dampier is online banking now and will be logging in every 15th of the month to see if his paycheck cleared. I hope Josh Howard can do a few more things this year, but I would not be surprised if he isn't moved come February since his nearly $12M salary next year is on a team option (good agent work - I hope he's got a trade kicker in there).

That's really all I've got to say about the Mavs for now, but I will note that while searching on whether Josh Howard has a trade kicker (he doesn't) - yes, I'm easily sidetracked by salary nerdiness - I did see that Erick Dampier's contract for next year is unguaranteed if he does not make the All Star team or does not play in 2,100 minutes in his 70 highest minute games. ED has never played 2,100 minutes while wearing Mavericks blue. So Dampier and Howard provide Dallas with $21M of very movable contracts come trade deadline time. So while the team now is at least decently constructed, the March/April product can be quite different. And don't underestimate the power of movable contracts - the Lakers turned Kwame Brown's into 2 trips to the Finals. Thanks ShamSports!

Houston

4-game weeks: 11
Minimum game weeks: 2
Playoff schedule: 4-4-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 16 (AS week) - teams also at minimum this week: BOS, IND, MEM, NYK, OKC, PHX, TOR, WAS
Week 20 - teams also at minimum this week: ATL, LAL, PHX

People of the planet Houston! One has to wonder where the pure scoring is going to come from without the Yao and the McGrady. Stretches from Game 5 of the Finals aside, Ariza is not a scorer in the true sense. But he can still steal the ball, I'll give him that. Brooks looks like he'll be in the scoring point guard mold; we'll see how that goes for him. I like Scola - he'll be my consolation prize when I don't get David Lee in round 2 or 3 and I want the greasier haired Spanish speaking version of him a few rounds later.

But back to the schedule, and it's very interesting. Everything comes in bunches, 4-gamers weeks 3 + 4 and weeks 8 + 9, then all 3-gamers the month of January. By then, we should know who the Rockets are. After the 1-game All-Star week, Houston is seriously golden. By then, we could see McGrady, McGrady's expiring contract traded for something, the return of Yao, the one who becomes the dominant threat on offense, a return to relevance of Shane Battier, Aussie David Anderson, or the emergence of some of those 2nd round picks they bought this summer. This Rocket squad is going to be one to watch in Feb. and March.

Memphis

4-game weeks: 11
Minimum game weeks: 2
Playoff schedule: 3-3-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 9 - teams also at minimum this week: CHA, NJN, NOH, PHI, TOR
Week 16 (AS week) - teams also at minimum this week: BOS, HOU, IND, NYK, OKC, PHX, TOR, WAS

The reason I'll try to watch Memphis games on League Pass this year? No, not because they have good young talent. No, not because their opponents will have great nights against them. It's the local commercials, featuring the finest establishments of the Mid-South, like Carl Hogan Automotive in Columbus, MS (I gotta have DeLois Price).

Memphis has a decent enough schedule - their minimum game weeks have a lot of company, so you shouldn't get run over during these weeks. Their playoff sked ain't much to look at, but take out All-Star week and Memphis has 4-gamers from week 14 through week 20. And say what you will about Memphis, they do have fantasy relevant players. I had OJ Mayo for most of last year, and while I don't love him, I understand the lure - he played in every game and had double digit points in 75 of them. His long distance range is good and should only get better. He also likes getting to the line and converting once there. Good for you. You don't hear a lot about it, but Mike Conley was quite the fantasy player from early March 09 on - top 50 and approaching top 25 for that stretch. You fantasy players like n'est pas? Well he did that once last April, why not a few more times this year, preferably in the same week? I wouldn't say Rudy Gay was a bust last year, but we all know he can do better. I have a feeling that this summer of 2010 could be the wrong year to be a restricted free agent, but good luck to you anyways. Gasol the younger was good some games, great others, blech in still others. I wouldn't complain too much if he was my 2nd Center in a must have 2 C's league (I'd like him even better as a third C / Util in such a league for a big ball team and to screw someone else over). And Z-Bo's there! I think he got to Memphis a few years too late because the strip club scene in Memphis isn't as strong as it was 6-10 years ago. Or so I hear. But if anyone can score and rebound, at nudie bars or in arenas near a large river, it's Zach Randolph.

So no, this squad doesn't need AI to make it a fun team to watch, fantasy-wise.

New Orleans

4-game weeks: 13
Minimum game weeks: 4
Playoff schedule: 3-4-3-1

Minimum game weeks:
Week 5 - teams also at minimum this week: CHI
Week 6 - teams also at minimum this week: LAC, OKC, ORL, POR, SAS
Week 9 - teams also at minimum this week: CHA, MEM, NJN, PHI, TOR
Week 25 (last week of season, combined with week before) - teams also at minimum this week: CLE

Last year's Hornets schedule was strongly backloaded, with a lot of 4-gamers around the clubhouse turn. This year? What a hot mess. On the plus side, they have the most 4 game weeks of any team in the league, 13, same as New York. They have nice stretches of those games early on: weeks 2-4 and weeks 11-15. But they have 2-gamers back to back in weeks 5 and 6. The week 5 one is crippling, as only 1 other team (Chicago) has the same sitch, and 14 teams have 4 game weeks at that time. Week 6 is not so treacherous. The playoffs are treacherous - NO plays only 4 games in your finals week, while everyone else plays 5 or 6.

What does this mean for your fantasy team? Well, I like it for Chris Paul - he's almost schedule proof, as his counting stat strengths, assists and steals, can be hard to get, and if he gives you 24 assists and 5 steals in a 2-game week, that's almost as good if not better than your replacement 4-gamer. 2-game weeks hurt the guys like David West who excel in points and rebounds and percentages. The Hornets aren't deep fantasy-wise for your standard 10-13 round leagues- Paul, West, Okafor; maybe Posey and Wright. You can get by with West or Okafor or Wright on your bench for a couple of weeks. Let's see about supporting Paul, looking at who plays max games in weeks 5 and 6: Dallas, Milwaukee, New York, and Toronto.

Let's eliminate Milwaukee - they have no one you'd take at 24 or 25 (12 team league, you have pick #1 and take Paul) or 48/49 for that matter. Dallas - you aren't getting Dirk, but Terry, Marion, and Kidd could certainly help in the next few rounds. New York - you'd have to take a good look at David Lee, then maybe Al Harrington. Toronto - you're not getting Bosh, but I'd put Calderon on my squad any day of the week (preferably Sunday night when lineups lock for the week ahead).

Now you want to take care of your playoff finals, since you will be in the finals, right? Who plays 6 games in the last 2 weeks?

Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Detroit, Golden State, Houston, Memphis, Milwaukee, New York, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, San Antonio, Toronto, Washington.

As you can see, you don't need to go out of your way to draft Paul backup, and you shouldn't 5 months away from the playoffs. Just keep it in mind as the All-Star Game approaches.

San Antonio

4-game weeks: 11
Minimum game weeks: 2
Playoff schedule: 4-4-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 2 - teams also at minimum this week: none
Week 6 - teams also at minimum this week: LAC, NOH, OKC, ORL, POR

San Antone starts the year game-wise off slow. Week 2, they have the only 2 game week, and half the league plays 4. San Antonio is loaded at the end, finishing the year with max games from weeks 20 through 25: 4-4-4-4-4-2. If you remember last year, and if you had Duncan on your squad, you do, Coach Pop rested Duncan and/or Parker and/or Ginobli in instances when they had back to back games late in the year. Gee, ya think he'll still do that now that they all are a year older? Maybe. That's why I'm leery of having Duncan on my squad as a high pick this year. 2nd or 3rd round? No, I need a guy I can count on or get value back in a trade come February. Maybe 4th or 5th. Parker? I'll still take him, but at an appropriate time and if I have a team punting 3's and such. Ginobli? Meh.

Does that mean Spurs aren't worth having? Nosiree. Late in the year, I'm looking at guys who will get an uptick late in the year with increased PT, mainly for standard or deep leagues. Antonio McDyess, George Hill, and Roger Mason could all look better in the 2nd half than on draft day. And no, I haven't forgotten about Richard Jefferson. He won't put up numbers like last year, but I can't severely downgrade him, just because I can't see him being rested in the latter months. The Spurs, like the Rockets, need to be watched in the closing weeks.

Thus endth the Southwest Division. Coming next, the ever exciting Northwest Division - they have a team in Utah!

And in honor of the Four Fingers of Fantasy Guide coming out today on Give Me The Rock, here's a cheerleader photo. Dance!

09/10 Schedules - Central Division

Yeah, take a good look, Bron-Bron. This division is yours for the taking. "Oh The Places You'll Go", huh? Was one of those places the locker room to clean out your stuff around Memorial Day? And Mr. James, shake a guy's hand after a hard-fought series; at the very least it's a chance to give the stinkpalm. Hey, did you know that Shaq is on your team now? Big tall guy, talks low, thinks he's real funny. Pass it to him a couple of times tonight - better yet past it to Mo and tell him to pass it to him. That would help things out a bit on this end. Onto the division del Central!

Chicago

4-game weeks: 10
Minimum game weeks: 1
Playoff schedule: 4-3-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 5 - teams also at minimum this week: NOH

You know, the NBA playoffs the last few years have presented some memorable 1st round series - Dallas/Golden State in 06, Boston/Atlanta in 08, and Boston/Chicago 09. All of the lower seeds in those made the average fan say, "Hey, they may be onto something." (Well, maybe not Atlanta.) Us fantasy guys are usually ahead of the curve, so we knew about Golden State, knew Atlanta had plenty of solid players even when they sucked, and knew Chicago had some talented if not frustrating stat guys. Everyone has picked up and dropped Tyrus Thomas at least once. Someone in your league jumped on Salmons right after he was traded. Derrick Rose didn't really come on until the last month of the season, and then bam! big games against the Celts. Someone will pounce on him a hair too early - me, I kinda like PG's who can shoot 3's, swipe it, and hit their freebies, and if they aren't like that, Tony Parker, Rondo, and Miller are better options. That's right now, but Rose is in that grouping.

Anyway, the Bulls schedule is weak for fantasy weeks. They play only 14 games the first 4 weeks and is fairly open the first half of the season. Their only really good stretch is the month of February, where they play a maximum 4-2-4-4. I'd keep reading the rumor reports around that time. They made a deal last season, and Brad Miller has a $12M expiring contract; if they want to give up cap space next summer, they can add a nice piece if they need to. Hopefully, Luol Deng is healthy in Feb, because if I had to have any Bulls then, I'd like guys with little chance of being traded, like Deng and his contract. Also, their fantasy playoff schedule is nice, so that can come in handy, especially if decent players get waived in your league, like a John Salmons (who shouldn't get waived, but silly things happen at the end of the year by teams that are out of it).

Cleveland

4-game weeks: 10
Minimum game weeks: 1 (last week of season, 1 game)
Playoff schedule: 3-3-4-1

Minimum game weeks:
Week 25 - teams also at minimum this week: NOH

Cleveland is one of the few teams that have a mess of games up front - six 4-game weeks in November and December, including a bam! how ya like me now week 1 4-game spot. This is when you draft LeBron and get off to that early wire-to-wire lead. Since much of the value with the Cavs is early in the season, I tend to lean toward the guys who will be more of the sure things. LBJ, sure, Mo Williams - a nice PG if you're punting assists, and maybe Anderson Varejao in the later rounds if he fills a need. I can't trust anyone else. Definitely not Shaq or Ilgauskas (an injury to one or both would change things though). I would love Delonte West, Anthony Parker, and Jamario Moon all if they were on crappier teams. Minutes would be there and they wouldn't have to share. Damn you for being good, CLE!

Cleveland only has one game where it plays the minimum games. The good news is it's the last week of the season, and either you don't use it or it gets combined with the week before (which is a 4-gamer). So while you're never under the gun, you never get the chance to pounce. Besides LeBron (granted, he is a big one), Mo Williams, and maybe Delonte West, Cavs players won't be huge factors in shallow leagues, and at best, pieces in deeper leagues. (Hi Boobie!)

Detroit

4-game weeks: 10
Minimum game weeks: 1
Playoff schedule: 3-3-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 10 - teams also at minimum this week: LAC

Wow. Detroit got better this offseason. Or differenter. Fantasy ballers look at those pickups and say, "Really? They'll make your team better?" Real life NBA fans look at those pickups and say, "Really? They'll make your team better?" The difference - they won't have as much disdain in their voices after being pissed off at them for the last 3 plus years. The truth is, they aren't bad players, and depending on how you are drafting might be a fit for your team. Ben Gordon shot 45.5% last year, the 2nd time in his career he was over 45%. He'll make threes, score 20ish, and hopefully get close to 45% so as not to kill you in FG%. He played 36 minutes a game last year while starting - no guarantees he gets those minutes behind and around Rip Hamilton. Villanueva is a nice little piece who can score some, rebound some, and make a few threes. He might be the guy you want four rounds after saying, "Damn, I wish I got Antawn Jamison."

As for their schedule, they are another team who is not loaded with 4-gamers. They only play one 2-game min week, and in theory this shouldn't devastate you, since no one on their team is going to warrant a high enough draft pick where a min game week will hurt you. The strong part of their schedule is right after All-Star week and right before fantasy playoffs where they go 4-4-4-3-4. Depending on whether they are in the mix for EC spots 6-8 will determine whether the guys to go after at that time are Jason Maxiell, Chris Wilcox or Will Bynum and Austin Daye.

Say hello to Tayshaun Prince for me, since I won't be able to see him on my roster.

Indiana

4-game weeks: 12
minimum game weeks: 3 (1 during All Star week)
fantasy playoff schedule: 4-3-3-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 1 - teams also at minimum this week: GSW, MIL, UTA
Week 3 - teams also at minimum this week: MIL, SAC, WAS
Week 16 (AS week) - teams also at minimum this week: BOS, HOU, MEM, NYK, OKC, PHX, TOR, WAS

Right off the bat, Indiana starts off 2-3-2 - that's rough if you're counting on Danny Granger to be your first round stud. Also, in fantasy semis and finals, it goes 3-3-2 for Granger. I'd be a little worried about those first 3 weeks though, so it might help to counter that with your second round pick. Let's say it's a run of the mill 9-cat H2H league with 12 teams. No one's bat-shit insane, so the draft so far has been Paul, James, Wade, Durant, Bryant, Nowitzki. You take Granger at 7, decent pick, the earliest he can and should be picked. Your next pick is at 18, so preferably, you want someone who is playing big schedules (11 games) those first 3 weeks. Let's look:

Celtics: 4-4-3
Cavaliers: 4-3-3
Clippers: 4-3-4
T'wolves: 3-4-4
Hornets: 3-4-4
Suns: 3-4-4
Blazers: 4-3-4

Now figure out who will be off the board by then: Howard, Amar'e, D. Williams, Bosh, Jefferson, Pau Gasol. Brandon Roy would be a nice fit, but I'm not holding out hopes he's there. Steve Nash has a decent chance he's available at #18, as does Kevin Garnett. After that, it looks like your best Granger insurance is in later rounds, like a David West in round 3 or LaMarcus Aldridge in round 4 or 5. Also, the Clippers schedule matches up really well with the Pacers. besides being opposites in week 1 and 3, LAC also has a lot of 4 game weeks in the middle of the year, right when Indiana does, so if I get Granger or even Troy Murphy, I'm looking a little harder at Eric Gordon, Camby, Kaman, and Griffin.

Teams with just as bad schedules as Indiana in weeks 1-3 (9 or fewer games):

Bobcats: 3-3-3
Bulls: 3-3-3
Warriors: 2-3-4
Heat: 3-3-3
Bucks: 2-3-2
Kings: 3-4-2
Wizards: 3-4-2

Nobody on these teams is really in the draftable danger zone in round 2 for Granger (say, ranked 15-25) except Butler, G. Wallace. Keep an eye out in rounds 3-4 for guys on these teams - Arenas, Jamison, K. Martin, Monta Ellis, etc. And of course Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy.

Once you get past the first 3 weeks with Indiana, their sked is golden as they have eight 4-gamers through the end of January. So Granger and Troy Murphy will be nice then, as will a healthy Dunleavy. I wouldn't necessarily say TJ Ford, but if he's your cup of tea, go for it.

As I said above, the Clippers schedule matches up really well with Indiana's, with a lot of 4 gamers then. Also good ones are Cleveland, Minnesota, New Orleans, Toronto, and Washington.

Milwaukee

4-game weeks: 9
5-game weeks: 1
minimum game weeks: 2
fantasy playoff schedule: 4-4-4-2

Minimum game weeks:
Week 1 - teams also at minimum this week: GSW, IND, UTA
Week 3 - teams also at minimum this week: IND, SAC, WAS

Well, at least their playoff schedule is nice. That said, who is going to be pulling in enough good numbers to do anything with that? Bogut will give you rebounds and FG%; that would be swell if there wasn't anyone else in the association who could do that. The problem is, many do. I can't imagine Michael Redd will be doing anything for the Bucks in April.

Here's the big thing about the Bucks sked: week 18 - the 5 game week. What a cruel joke that this is wasted on the Bucks. This week starts on Feb. 22. The trade deadline is Feb. 18th. I believe that the Bucks will try anything to shed Michael Redd (and his $18M player option for 2010-2011), so I can't guarantee that he'll do anything that week. Ridnour and Kurt Thomas, 2 guys I think could at least put up some #'s in 5 games, are expiring contract and thus are no locks to be wearing Bucks green (or red if it's alternate jersey night). So I say at this point, look at guys who will likely be on the roster through February: Ersan Ilysova, Bogut, Gadzuric, and my favorite, Luc Mbah A Moute. Brandon Jennings and Joe Alexander deserve looks, too, but their PT isn't going to magically appear on President's Day.

Really, I've got nothing else good to say about the Bucks. As my cousin, Vincent Gambini would say, "I'm finished with these guys."

Next, the Southwest Division, featuring the fine folks from San Antonio, Texas. You all probably root for a team from New York City. New York City?!?